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WASHINGTON- Senator Joe Lieberman (D-CT), a senior member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, today praised last week’s federal ruling reinstating the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, a 2001 rule that banned road construction in nearly one-third of all national forests. In 2005, the Bush Administration reversed the rule and adopted a state-by-state process, which a federal district court in California last Wednesday held to be in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act. The court found that the Bush Administration's 2005 reversal failed to conduct an environmental analysis of the effects of reversing roadless protections on forests and endangered species.
"This is a great victory for the American people and our forests against an Administration that has spent the last six years systematically rolling back environmental protections.” Lieberman said. “This federal ruling is underscored by the will of the people: Americans have shown their overwhelming support for preserving wilderness roadless areas which provide unmatched recreation activities, clean drinking water, and critical habitat for healthy fish and wildlife populations."
Since 2001, Senator Lieberman has fought Administration efforts to undermine the Roadless Rule. In March 2006, Senator Lieberman joined Senators Cantwell (D-WA) and Bingaman (D-NM) and other colleagues in the introduction of the Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2006. The bill codifies the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule into law to ensure continued protection of pristine National Forest lands. More than 250,000 Americans have formally petitioned the Bush administration to reinstate the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule which protects over 500,000 acres in the Northeast.
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